Nature of Man

The defintion of oppression is the feeling of being heavily burdened, mentally or physcially. Tacitus a roman philosopher once said that "a desire to resist oppression is implanted in the nature of man". Tacitus was saying that in each person, resisting oppression is in our human nature. In Henrick Ibsen's play "A Doll's House" this exact aspect of life is shown. The character Nora demonstrates this identical quality. As Tacitus said, deep down in each person there is a tendency to resist oppression and Nora was no exception. Living under the rule of her husband Torvald, Nora was faced with the challenge to fight off oppression. In the time period, most wives did not question or go against there husband, but Nora was different. Nora had her mental burdens all in her own mind. She struggled between saving her relationship or showing her desire to be independent and free. At the conclusion of the play Nora finally decided that it was in her own best interest to leave her situation and rid herself of her past and of the oppression she faced. In today's society similar actions from women are more common, but when Nora left Torvald and her family it became a scandal. Tacitus believed that it was the nature of each person to resist what is against that individual and Nora did the same.